How important is playing a game “on time” to your enjoyment

[phart010 | 1,705]

As an introduction, let me tell a little story. I’m not really a big sports fan, but when I was finishing college my roommate was really into NFL football.

He used to always mute the volume during the commercials. I asked why and he says If the network is going to force him to see the commercials then he’s not going to listen to them

So I asked why don’t you just record the game on your DVR and then watch it like 30 minutes delayed so you can fast forward past the commercials. He says that it’s not the same unless you’re watching it live.
 

Even if it’s only a 30 minute delay? Yes, it Hass to be watched at the proper time.

So tying this back into video games, do you get more enjoyment out of playing video games right after launch? Or do the games give you the same amount of enjoyment if you play them six months delayed.

Edited October 2, 2021 by phart010

[nrslam | 474]

I buy almost everything (game-wise) used at thrifts/G-sales/flea markets so it's typically a few, and sometimes many, years after release that I get around to playing it.  It's still a new experience for me.

[captmorgandrinker | 1,648]

Depends on the game.  If it's something I'm looking forward to playing, I'll grab it on release day.

Other things that look interesting, I'll just pick up as I have time to play them.

For your original example, if you have the game on delay your friends might text you spoilers.

[Tulpa | 3,485]

On the one hand, I get playing a game when everyone else is playing it adds to the communal experience, and as time goes on, interest fades and you have fewer people playing it.

On the other, I think people caught up in the "I GOT TO PLAY THIS BEFORE ANYONE ELSE" mentality are way too anal.

[Estil | 1,258]

Since nearly all the games I play are at least a decade or two old...

Even Dragon Quest 11 is already four years old...

Edited October 3, 2021 by Estil

[Reed Rothchild | 9,493]

I almost never do.  Why spend $60 when you can get it for $20 or $30 soon enough?  Or a deluxe version with DLC.

The sports analogy is more understandable.  Hard to keep the tension if you can glance at your phone to see what happened.

[a3quit4s | 4,086]

I very rarely but games on the release date unless I know I’m going to like them. I’m waiting till Black Friday for Metroid dread but buying farcry 6 on release. I like Metroid but have really enjoyed the farcry experience. I’ll buy halo Infinite on launch and maybe a couple others but mostly I buy and play games that are decades old lol

I may get caught up on the hype train for some other games for series x and ps5 though because there is simply not enough games that really take advantage of what they offer even a year later 

Edited October 2, 2021 by a3quit4s

[drxandy | 3,225]

When it's a franchise or game you really enjoy, the hype from other people really adds to the experience for me.

I kinda feel similar to movies, you always remember when you got to see a flick you like in the theater when it came out down the line. On the otherhand, also related to movies: I don't have any issue with goin on an oldies kick and getting to experience things that you either were too young on their release or missed/passed over/nostalgia.

[fcgamer | 4,717]

I don't play modern gamese...

I think it could play a role depending on the situation. Take Pokemon first launch in the USA for example,I'm glad I was part of that

[Reed Rothchild | 9,493]

I guess the exception would be if you need a thriving online scene for the full experience.  Like, I wouldn't trade my time with Bad Company 2 for anything, and I wouldn't have gotten it if I hadn't been there at launch.

Another couple exceptions are when Ocarina of Time and Dark Souls came out.  Those are two games where everyone I know was in on launch, so it made for a fun shared experience.  So I totally understand the appeal.

[Nintegageo | 582]

I would say that generally, no I don't care. There are some games that are like events though, and yes it does matter. Like when people were walking into moving cars to capture little animated monsters on their phone. That was an event.

[Sumez | 2,927]

If I'm excited for a game I probably want to play it soon... which is very rarely on release but maybe a year later at most. But usually it doesn't matter. I don't see any real reasons why it would.

[guitarzombie | 923]

I always buy things late, because I can always wait when they go on sale.  Except for Doom Eternal, which was the only game I've ever pre-ordered.  

[Tulpa | 3,485]

2 hours ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I guess the exception would be if you need a thriving online scene for the full experience. 

Some of those indie online co-op games are fun, but once they fall out of fashion, it can be like pulling teeth to get enough people to play with you.

[DarkTone | 984]

I was just thinking of this. I prefer to take my time, but avoiding spoilers is tough. 

[DoctorEncore | 3,690]

The collective experience is great when you can get it, but for 99% of games, I have no problem waiting for a sale. Still, it is very exciting to be playing through a game when there is that air of discovery about. I don't think there are any upcoming games I'm excited enough about to buy on day one, although Halo Infinite would have made the list if co-op hadn't been delayed (terrible decision to release the game without it, in my opinion). Thank God the multiplayer is great in all the previews.

[fox | 1,663]

I know what kind of games I like and time is limited so why wait.

If it is single player story based, it’s fun to be part of the conversation and share tips and see what choices friends made.  Not to mention avoiding spoilers gets hard.

If it is multiplayer focus, you want to be play it with friends and when the community is most active at launch.

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

If playing "on time" as described at the beginning of this thread were important to me, I'd likely never play much at all.    Seriously, I think the last games I played at launch because I felt I "had" to (couch co-op with a buddy), were Halo 3 & 4.  There have been a few more games that I've bought at launch, but rarely have I ever been able to immediately sit down with them right then and there.  Other than occasionally having issues finding people running into the same issues I am when dusting off long dead threads, I rarely have any issue with playing games the bleeding edge gamer community has long since forgotten about.

[Hammerfestus | 3,816]

It mattered and added to the experience when I was 15 but not since then.  Back then I remember a handful of titles I got on launch day and how anticipated it was — Final Fantasy 7, Resident Evil 2, Metal Gear Solid.

Now not so much.  I got Dragon Quest 11 at launch.  Do you know what happened?  They then released a better version with cool new features I’d have to rebuy.  Bastards.

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

2 minutes ago, Hammerfestus said:

Now not so much.  I got Dragon Quest 11 at launch.  Do you know what happened?  They then released a better version with cool new features I’d have to rebuy.  Bastards.

Now they release a base game that sometimes functions, patch the hell out of it after the fact, often adding free and paid DLC, then when the servers go dark, if you haven't got it all installed somewhere already, you're lucky to be left with a functional copy of the game.  Yay progress! 

[croagunk | 798]

For the types of games I play, it doesn’t matter to me if I don’t play it at launch. 

[RH | 4,882]

In my younger days, I only wanted new games. I never wanted to get a used game, and wanted stuff in excellent shape. To be fair, almost all used games were in EB or Funcoland. Mostt games weren't terrible but scuffs and worn labels bothered me.

However, after collecting so many games on eBay and learning how to hunt for quality conditioned items, I find it hard to buy games new. And, when I do buy a new one, it's now hard for me to open it. I have gotten so use to buying used, I feel like I'm leaving money on the table when I open a new game.

I know, I know... "games are meant to be played", especially new ones but since a lot of my games I buy are LRG and since they tend to go up by the time I actually am able to play them, it often does feel like I'm leaving cash on the table.

Anyway, there are very few games I want to play right away. Octopath Traveler was one. I will for Axiom Verge, but again, that will be from LRG which will be months before delivery. And right now, I immediately bought and gladly opened Cruis'n Blast. I didn't need it right away to be a "first" but I really, really just wanted to play that one.

Now Metroid Dread... yeah, that's one I don't want spoiled. I LOVE 2D Metroid and that's one I'll want to get into ASAP.

[Estil | 1,258]

21 minutes ago, RH said:

In my younger days, I only wanted new games. I never wanted to get a used game, and wanted stuff in excellent shape.

Well I HAD to do that in my college days (early 2000s) because I didn't want to risk getting 'printed or scratched up discs  

[Tanooki | 4,929]

Unless it's that rare game by design that needs to be played with others and that just IS the game, not a mode of the game, then 100% it does.

Outside of that, which is like 95%+ of the time, not in the slightest.  I'd rather enjoy it at my own pace, at my own time, and at a price I feel the game is worth it to me to bother with.  Often if it's a non-Nintendo or on Switch property I want on there, such as Sony/MS stuff that always dual-releases to Steam these days basically...I'll get it on Steam.  And with Steam I'll wait weeks, months easy, because I'm not desperate.  I'm good waiting for the quarterly seasonal sales, christmas or christmas in july shenanigans and take that nice slick 33-75%+ off discount.  As a bonus, any weird quirks are usually worked out by then anyway.

[RH | 4,882]

6 minutes ago, Estil said:

Well I HAD to do that in my college days (early 2000s) because I didn't want to risk getting 'printed or scratched up discs  

I know you and I are the same age. So, yes. For me it was N64, PS1 and PS2 titles.